There is currently various devices and methods for testing passenger restraint devices, such as airbags and seat belts. For instance, full size automobiles are sometimes employed by the government and automotive industry for final impact testing. However, it is generally impractical to use full size automobiles for impact testing, particularly during design and research stages necessary to ensure compliance with government mandated safety standards.
Another type of impact testing method and device, typically referred as HYGE crash simulator, is currently employed to simulate crash conditions, an example of which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,483,845 to Stein et al. Such devices typically include a pressure differential firing means, utilizing both hydraulic and pneumatic pressures, which terminates in a thrust column. Upon actuation of the firing means, the thrust column accelerates a sled carriage suitably mounted on a track to be movable along the track. A test buck housing a forward facing vehicle occupant or driver specimen, generally in the form of an anthropomorphic dummy, is fixedly mounted on the sled carriage. Acceleration of the sled carriage by the thrust column produces rapid acceleration of the movable sled carriage and thereby also the test buck. As a result of the rapid acceleration of the sled carriage and test buck along the track, the occupant or driver test specimen is subjected to a rapid change in longitudinal velocity relative to the test buck, thereby simulating an impact crash of an automobile vehicle.
The problem with such impact testing devices is that they are too large, typically requiring a minimum room size of about 20 feet wide.times.100 feet long.times.12 feet high. Such testing devices are also very expensive (i.e., typically sold for $1,200,000) and require an enormous amount of foundation network and preparation prior to installation. Such problems are associated in part to the arrangement of the firing means which typically has both the pneumatic and hydraulic cylinders arranged along a longitudinal axis, thereby requiring a significant amount of room to be allocated thereto. The sled carriage and tracks are also arranged at a distance from each other with the firing means adapted to strike a front end of the sled carriage. Such an arrangement also increases the overall length of the impact testing device.
There is a need for a compact, inexpensive impact testing device for conducting performance comparison and evaluation tests on passenger restraint devices, such as airbag and set belt systems, prior to testing these components on a HYGE crash simulator. There is also a need for a test device which enables such tests to be performed efficiently and quickly to reduce new module development time.